Semi-weekly south Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1883-1889, 1887-06-07

am all powerful; l whose loveliness is greater
than the LONELINESS Of the Greciap Helen Of
whom they sing, and whose wisdom is greater
-ny, ten times moro grent-than tho wisdom
of solomon the Wise; who know the secrets
of tho earth and its riches, and can turn all
things TO my uses. who have even for
awhile overcome change, that ye call death
why, say, oh, stranger, dOst thou think that
herd here with barbalians lower than the
bcastsi"
al know not" said, humbly.
"Because l wait for him / love. My life
has perchance been evil, / know not--for
who can say what is evil and what is goodl-
so fear to die, even IL l could die, which /
cannot, to go and seek him where he is; for
between us there might be n wall / could not
cimb-at least fear so, Surely easy would
1t be to lose the way in those great spaces
wherein the suns wander on forever But
the day will come, may be, when ten thousand
more years have passed and are lost anf
melted into the vault of Time, even as tbs
little clouds melt into the gloom Of nighs,
when he shall be born again, and then, fol-
lowing law that is stronger than any human
plan, he will find me here, and OF a surety
his heart will soften toward me though
Sinned against him; ay, even though no
knows me not again, yet will he lore me, IL
only for my beautys sake"
For a moment / was dumfounded, and
could not answer. The matter was too over
towering for my intellect to grasp.
"But even So oh, queen,' l said at last,
seven il we men DO born again and again,
that is not so with thee, il thou spealiest
truly Here she looked up sharply, and
once more caught the flash Of those hidden
eyes-@Thou," l went on, hurriedly, "who
hast never died"
ATS So" she said; sand 1t is so because
have, half by chance and half by learning,
solved one of the great secrets Of the world.
Tell me, stranger: life is-why, therefore,
should not life be heightened for whiei
Whit are ten or twenty or fifty thousand
years In tho history of llfel Why, in ten
thousand years scarce will the rain and
storms lessen a mountain top by span in
thickness. In two thousand years these caves
have not changed; naught has changed but
the beasts and man, who is as the beasts.
There is naught that is wonderful about the
matter, conldst thou but understand. Life is
wonderful, ny, but that it should be little
| heightened is not wonderful Nature hath
her animating spirit as well as man, who is
Natures child, and he who can find that spirit
and let it breathe upon him shall live with
her life. He shall not live eternally, for
Nature is not eternal, and she herself must
die, even as the nature of the moon hath died.
She herself must die, say, or rather change
and sleep till it be time for her to live again.
But when shall she diel Not yet, l ween;
and while she lives so shall he who hath all
her secret live with her. All l have not, yet
have some more, perchance, than any who
were before me. Now to thee l doubt not
this thing is great mystery, therefore will
not overcome thee with it now Another
time will l tell thee more II the mood be on
me, though, perchance, 1 shall never speak of
1t again. Dost thou wonder how knew that
20 were coming, and so saved your heads
from the hot potP
"Ay, oh queen" l answered, fcebly.
"Then gaze in the water" and she pointed
| to the font like vessel, and then, bending for
ward, held her hand over it.
rose and gazed, and instantly the water
darkened. Then 1t cleared, and saw as dis
tinctly as / ever saw anything In my life-I
saw, say, our boat upon shat horrible canal.
There was Leo lying at the bottom nsleep
In It, with coat thrown over him to keep oil
the mosquitoes, in such fashion as TO hid,
his face. and myself. Job, and MahomeC
towing on the bank.
| started back aghast, and cried out that II
was magic, for recognized the whole scene
1t was one that had actually occurred.
"No, no, oh Holly she answered, "it Is nj
magic; that Is n fiction of ignorance. There
Is no such thing ms magic, though there i
such thing as the knowledge Of tho secret
of nature. That Is my glass; in it SEE
what passes, if / caro- TO summon up the
pictures, which is not often. In the water
can show thee what thou wilt Of the past, If i
be ANYTHING TO do with this country and will
what have known, or anything that thou
the gazer, hast known. Think OF face
II thou wilt, and 1t shall DO reflected from
thy mind upon the water. ! know not all tht
Iecret YETI can read nothing in the future
But it is an old secret; l did not discover
1t. In Arabia and in Egypt the sorcerer
knew 1t centuries ago. So one day chancet
10 bethink mo OF that old canal-some twenty
centuries ago / sailed up it-and ! wa
minded to Look upon 1t again. And SO
looked, and there l saw the boat and thre
men walking, mld one, whose face ] coult
not see, but youth Of a noble FORM sleepin
In tho boat, and so ! sent and saved ye. An
now farewell. But stay, tell me Of TIL
youth--the Lion, as tho old man calls him.
w3lld look upon him, but he Is sick, tho
sayest-sick with the fever. and also wounds
In the fray"
ale is very sick,n / answered, sadly
"Canst thou do nothing for him, oh, queen
who knowest so muchn
"0f a surety can. can cure him; Blu
why speakest thou so sadlyl Dost thou Low
the YOUTH Is be perchance thy sonp
, "He Is my adopted son, oh, quopn. Shal
. he be brought in before theei"
"Nay. How long hath the fever take
him"
HThis Is the third day."
HGood; then let him lie another day. The
will no perchance throw it off by his ow
strength, and that is better than that | shoul
cure him, for my medicine is Of n sort
shake the life In its very citadel If, bow
ever, by tomorrow night, at that hour whe
the fever first took him, he doth not begin
mend, then will I come to him and cure hin
Stay, who nurses him"
aOur white servant, he whom Billall namC
the Pig; also"-and here l spoke with SON
. little hesitation--aa woman named Ustane,
! very DulluSOilb NOlluh VI bhio NouAh ~ va
came and kissed him when first she saw hin
and hath stayed by him ever since, as | VI
derstand is the fashion of thy people, oil
. queen"
any peoplcl Speak not to me Of my Pc
pie" she answered hastily; "these slaves M
no people Of mine; they are but dogs to
my bidding till the day of my redemptio
; comes; and for their customs, naugbt have
TO do with them. Also, call me not queen
am sick of 1attcry and titles-cals m
Ayesha; the name hath a sweet sound
mine ears; It Is an echo from the past As fc
this Ustano, know not. wonder II it !
she against whom was warned, and whoI
IN turn l did warni Hath shc-stay, l wi
see;n and bending forward, she passed he
hand over the font OF water and gazed il
tently into 1t. HSee," she said quietly, q
That tho woman"
/ looked into the water, and there, mil
rored upon its placid surface, was the 81
houette Of distances stately face. She wa
bending forward, with n look of infinite tel
derness upon her features watching som'
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